Animal trap



July 13 1926. 1,592,155

G. Raar-'ORD ANIMAL TRAP med nec. a. 1925 ste-naad Jniy i3,

Y Ursi-ifi" El serait-ar orsi-es.

ANIMAL TRAP.

Application filed December 8, 1925. Serial No. 74,014.

This invention relates to animal tra-ps` The object is to provide a str-ong anddurable trap which may be readily built in various sizes to catch'difi'erent'hinds of rodents or animals andrwhioh, beiiig'of light construction, maybe easily transported from one vlocation to anotherl and either set upon the ground or suspended from a tree orbush withthe' bait' exposed'to tempt the animal.

Another Objectis to provide a trap of this character which when properly set, will promptly act to strike a killing blow upon the neck of the animal without mutilatiiig the skin or fur, and which will effectually hold said yanimal from escape during the usual struggle preceding death, until removed from the trap by ther trapper.

A further object is to provide a trap havingl a powerfully actuated swinging jaw which may be tripped by certain animals that will bite at the bait and pull on the saine, Vand which may be asreadily tripped by other classes of animals that cautiously approach the bait and-gently nibble the same, the instantaneous vaction of theA jaw, in the latter` case, being accomplished by the weightl or partial weight of the animal effecting certain delicate jaw-releasing means incorporated iii the structure.

A stillffurther object is to provide atrap of generally open formation which m-ay be easily hidden while on the ground or suspended to allay the fears of the animals, said trap liavingineans for preventing` smaller animals or rodents from approaching the bait from the rear thereof and consuming the same in safety.v

A final'object is to'provideaftrap having means for locliiigthe swinging jawv in closedposition on the neck of the animal so that said jaw may'iiot, by any i'neans, be opened eceptv byv thegtrapper, said locking iiiea-nsbeing so constructed as to promptly act whether the trapbe set in shielded position or in the openand encrusted with snow and iee, etc. y

A full'and complete understanding'of the iiivientioiiniay be obtained from a consideration of the following detailed description, taken inceiii'iection'with the accompanying drawing 'forming apart ofthis speciiication; it being understood tliatwhile the drawing shows a` practical forni of theinvention, the latter is vnot'to beconfined to strict conformity with tlie'showing thereof, but may be changed or modified, so long as suoli lchanges or modifications niark no material departure from the salient features of the invention, as specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

ln the drawing, 'in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures:

Figure l is a perspective view of the iinproved trap, shown in open or set position.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same, the swinging jaw being tripped and locked in closed position.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal section thereof, the jaw being open as shown in Figure l.

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view showing the mounting of the jaw-actuating springs. y

Referring to the drawing there is shown a base member in the forni of an open traine composed of suitable strap iron bent to coinprise a front bar l and opposite, rearwardly-directed side bars 2 joined integrally therewith, the front and sides normally resting upon a support in edgewise position. riihe rear terminals of the side bars'are riveted, or otherwise connected, as at 3, to the upturned ends 4 of a rear cross bar or inember 5, also formed of similar strap iron, and adapted to rest flat upon said support beneath the ends of the said side bars, as shown.

Mounted in the upper ends ofthe upturned terminal portions i of the rear cross bar, is a shaft or pintle 6, preferably having its ends riveted in suitable apertures of the portions Ll, as shown at 7, and at an intermediate point said piiitle is supported by a bearing formed in the upper endof a plate 8, having an angularly bent footportion 9 which is riveted or otherwise secured to the rear cross bar 5. I 1

By riveting-the ends of the pintlerod, the same serves to rigidly brace the upturned ends of the rear cross bar, and said rod acts also 'as a pivot for a swinging jawinem'ber of'substantia-lly the same proportions as. the aforesaid base member. Said jaw'coinprises a front, or upper, cross bar lO'integrally connected to side arms il, which have their free ends pivoted` forV swinging action upon said rod 6, in abutting relation to theinnerg. opposed faces of the upstanding supports. The swinging jaw is formed of the' same strap material as the base member or frame, and is adapted to be forcefully swun'g'down into parallelism therewith around the three lli) springs 1Q of suitable size a: tl one oi' said springs being arran i side oi the intermediate support and cach spri7 has one of its ter ninals` 12a extending downwa'dly, adjacent to Caid support 8. and

engagiinT with the rear e 5, while the other, or outel terminals 13 oi the springs are somewhat extended and provided with outwardly-extending, terminal hooks 1l tor engaging over the adjacent edge of the side arms 11 ot the swinging jaw. By this manner of mounting the springs, it will be seen that the force ot the coiled sorings will tend to close the swinging jaw down upon the base trame. when the tripping means is actuated to release the holding means for the open jaw.

A rearwardly and upwardly inclined supporting arm 15 is secured to the rear cross bar 5, by means of a horizontal loot port-ion 16 extending forwardly and beneath said bar and is riveted thereto, as at 17. he upper end ot' the supporting arm is bent torwardly and is apertured to form a guide 1S, through which a longitudinally-slidable trigger rod 19 is passed, the upper end ot' the latter being bent forwardly, as at 20, and terminates in a downwardly entendino` lip 21, for engaging over the front edge or the cross bar olf' the swinging jaw, as clearly shown in Figure 1 ot' the drawing.

Mounted for pivotal movement upon the pintle rod 6, and adjacent to one side otl the intermediate support S, is a rocker arm 22, to the rear shorter end o' which is pivotally connected the lower end otl the aforesaid trigger rod 19, so that when said rocker arm is rocked about the axis of the pintle rod t3, in an upward direction, the aforesaid lip 21 is raised from its engagement with the cross arm 10 and the swinging jaw is allowed to swing down upon the base trame.

The rocker arm 22 is preferably i'ornied ot the same material as the base and the jaw7 and is mounted on the pintle rod in edgewise position, and the same is given a quarter turn in advance of the supportSto lie in a fiat plane, and is connected at its front, free end to a pedal plate or platform Q3, the front edge of which is located in rear of the front bar 1 of the base trame. It will be seen that when an animal steps upon the platorm 23, the latter will be deiiect-ed, with the result that the lip Q1 will release the swinging aw which instantly swings into contact with the neck of the animal, and the springs are of a force sutiicient to deliver a death blow to certain animals.

In order to tempt the animals to step upon the platform, a suitable bait is adapted to be impaled upon an upstanding, rearwardly curved prong Qi, suitably Secured to the rocher arm in advance of the pintle rodv` as indicated at 25, so that, in the event the animal is of a different and a larger size and would not approach the trap close enough to step upon the platform, the incre act of biting or tugging at the bait in an endeavor to iree the saine from the prong would result in tripping the swinging f as will be readily7 understood.

In order to prevent some olf the analler animals from approaching the bait 'om the rear and succeeding in getting hold of the same through the open structure of the swinging jaw, a guard plate :26 is provided which extends outwardly from either side edge of the aforesaid rear inclined.y support ing arm 15, to the rear side or which the same is suitably secured, and the said arm is further reinforced by an inclined brace which has one end connected thereto while the other end has an aperture through which the pintle rod passes.

Seem-ed tothe outer lace ot' one of the side bars 2 or' the base trame is a relatively small frame 2T formed of strap iron and having a vertical outer wall parallel to the side oi' the base side bar 2. Mounted transvers ,ly o if the base is a pintle pin 2S having one end secured in the small i'rame member 2T and the other in said bar 2, and pivoted on the pintle adjacent to the. latter bar is the lower end oi a ratchet lever 2S) having teeth 30 lormed in its rear edge and adjacent to the uppcil tree end of the same. Said teeth are adapted to be engaged by a pawl 31 rigidly attached to the adjacent side arm 11 ol: the swinging jaw, so that when the latter is swung down, the pawl will ride over the teeth until stopped by the neck or other portion ot the entrapped animal, and the said jaw will he eectually locked against upward movement by the struggles of the animal. In order to insure the engagement of the teeth with the said pawl, a coiled spring 32 is mounted on the pintle 2S, within the small supplemental trame 27, one terminal of the spring bearingl against a portion of the said Atrame in a well-known manner, while the other terminal is extended upwardly, as at 33, and is provided with a terminal hook 3l which engages aroung the forward edge of the ratchet lever to exert a constant pressure in a rearward direction upon the same.

F rom the foregoing it will be seen that a simple, cheaply-constructed and strong and durable animal trap has been provided which, by means of the prong 2land the platform 23 may be effectively tripped by a large or small animal even when the latter does not get hold of the bait; that the trap may be easily hidden by brush, leaves or the like without interfering with the operation thereot'; that the bait may not be tampered with from the rear of the trap or CTI devoured without the animal being caught, and finally that the trap may be either suspended from brush or limbs in a vertical position, with the spring end of the frame uppermost and suitably disguised or hidden or placed flat upon the ground and tethered and covered, the method of mounting the ratchet lever 29 serving to prevent clogging of the lever by accumulations of snow or the like, said lever being rocked forwardly with sufficient force by the action of the pawl under the pressure of the springs 12, as to overcome such accumulations.

What is claimed is:

l. An animal trap comprising an open rectangular base fra-me, a U-shaped swinging jaw having its side arm terminals hinged to the rear of the base frame, springs for forcing the jaw downwardly on the base, a rocking lever mounted on the pintle of the jaw and having a platform at its front end, an upstanding bait prong carried by the lever to rock the same in addition to the platform, an upstanding arm rigidly mounted on the rear end of the base and having a guide eye at its upper end, a trigger rod pivotally connected at its lower end to the end of the rocking lever in rear of the pintle, said rod extendingupwardly in an inclined position and adapted to move longitudinally through said guide`eye and in rear of the cross bar of the swinging j aw and having a forwardly extending arm terminating in a depending lip for engaging the cross bar to hold the jaw up or open and to be tripped for releasing the same Vwhen the prong is pulled yforwardly or the platform stepped on.

2. An animal trap comprising an open rectangular base frame, a U-shaped swinging jaw having its side arm terminals hinged to the rear of the base frame, springs for forcing the aw downwardly on the base, a rocking lever mounted on the pintle of the jaw and having a platform at its front end, a pawl rigidly connected to one of the side arms of the jaw, a supplemental frame connected to the corresponding side of the base frame, a pivotal pin mounted in the supplemental frame, an upstanding ratchet lever pivoted at its lower end on said pin and in position to co-act with the pawl on the jaw when the latter is swung down, and a coiled spring mounted on the pin and engaging the ratchet lever to force the teeth thereof to engage the pawl and lock the jaw in closed position.

3. An animal trap comprising an open rectangular base frame, a U-shaped swinging jaw having its side arm terminals hinged to the rear of the base frame, springs for forcing the jaw downwardly on the base, a rocking lever mounted on the pintle of the jaw and having a platform at its'front end, an upstanding bait prong carried by the lever to rock the same in addition to the platform, an upstanding, rearwardly-inclined supporting arm carried by the rear cross bar of the base, a brace arm connected to the latter and to the jaw pintle, a guide formed on the supporting arm, a trigger rod passing through the guide and pivotally connected to the end of the rocking lever where projecting in rear of the hinge pintle, the upper end of said trigger being bent forwardly and terminating in a downwardly-projecting lip for engaging the cross bar of the jaw to hold the same until raised by the rocking lever, and a plate secured to the supporting arm and having side wings to prevent animals from reaching the bait on the prong from the rear.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature.

GEORGE BEDFORD. 

